Saint Andrew the Russian Confessor in Cairo

Commemorated on 4/17 July

The ancient monastery of the Great Martyr George in Old Cairo (Eski-Masir) is rarely visited
by pilgrims, and indeed, only in the event of a funeral do the local Christian Arabs visit it, as
it possesses the only Orthodox cemetery in the area, with a chapel in honor of the Dormition of
the Mother of God. Near the monastery church a small chapel was built wherein one of its sacred
possessions, an ancient, miracle-working icon of St. George, could be kept. Both Christians and
Moslems bring their sick, especially those suffering from mental disturbances and epilepsy, to
this sacred shrine. They bind their patients with chains to a marble pillar which stands before
the chapel, and after a prayer service to the Great Martyr, they leave them there for several
days. From time to time those who are bound recover their faculties and are cured without
receiving any medication. Moreover, in that same monastery the patriarchal almshouses are to be
found, wherein the Alexandrian patriarch provides refuge for twelve poor and helpless elderly men
and women, chosen from amongst the local Orthodox population.

This small and poor monastery, erected near the ancient fortification towers, is also
remembered because herein a Russian man by the name of Andrew, who is called the Blessed,
struggled unseen, wherefore his labors were unnoticed. He was a rare example of Christian
humility and of unshakeable steadfastness of faith. This humble servant of God, enfeebled on
account of the tortures inflicted upon him by the barbarians, told no one about the things he had
suffered. The Lord, for Whose Holy Name he had suffered, alone knew these things, as also did a
certain poor priest, who himself had found refuge in the almshouses of St. George (this priest
was the spiritual father of Andrew and the latter had shared some of the episodes of his martyric
life with him). So great was the humility of Andrew! After his blessed repose, when the news of
his confession was made known to certain people, they esteemed him as one of Christ’s
confessors and as an ascetic, and here we set forth that which it has been possible to learn
concerning the ever-memorable Andrew, as it was related by his elder, the priest.

Andrew the Russian lived for twelve years under the care of the Monastery of St. George. He
fell asleep in the eighteen-fifties and was laid to rest in the Orthodox cemetery of Old Cairo.
The priest had known him for four years. Where Andrew’s birthplace was in Russia is not
known. It may be that he told his spiritual father about this, but the latter remembered neither
the name of the province, nor the town. Judging from the facts relating to the whereabouts and
circumstances of Andrew’s enslavement, one may surmise that he was born in the Caucasus in
some Cossack settlement and, therefore, it follows that he hailed from Cossack stock. Towards the
end of the eighteenth century the Caucasian Cossacks were often attacked by the Circassians who
took many captive. It is likely that Andrew, while yet a boy, was captured on one raid and taken
into the mountains, later to be placed on a ship of a Turkish fish-trader. Thus he was taken to
Istanbul, where he was sold to an Egyptian master.

The unfortunate Andrew, not understanding the language and intentions of his master, entrusted
himself in all things to the will of God. Moreover, aware of the oppressive enslavement of his
kin from his village by the Circassians and, thinking that no better fate awaited him, he
submitted to his destiny, but by no means would he offer to do anything beyond what was demanded
of him. “I will,” he thought, work for the apostate, and while a slave I will seek
consolation in the Lord alone, and furthermore no one will ever separate me from the Orthodox
Faith in which I was born, nourished and raised. Whose concern is it whether I am a Christian or
even a Jew, as long as I fulfill all my obligations dutifully?”

However, the fanatical master did not think thus. He desired that his white slave (what a
rarity!) should reflect his magnificence, and be a model of the true Moslem. Perhaps in time,
should he present him to the governor of the area, he might himself become a man of renown.
Similar cases were not uncommon in Turkey of pashas and even grand viziers of slave origin,
especially with respect to those from the Caucasus. If these slaves had formerly been Christians,
they forcibly were made Moslems. At first they would loyally serve their masters, still keeping
the right Faith; then, if the master were governor of a pashalic, they would receive some
unimportant position in his retinue, whereupon they were adopted into their master’s
household, and, finally, profiting from the rich and powerful satrap1, they made their
own careers and sometimes attained government offices of the highest rank. Whether motivated by
future benefits gained from zealous service or by youth or fear, almost all the captive
Christians – Abyssinian or Caucasian – who fetched high prices in the slave markets of Istanbul
and Cairo, became Moslems as soon as they entered the households of their Islamic purchasers,
often becoming quite fanatical.

Such was to be the lot of the Russian captive Andrew, at least so the Egyptian who had
purchased him supposed. Not realizing that Andrew commanded much religious conviction or
steadfastness, he took him into his household as a sign of his wealth, hoping to ennoble this
“piece of furniture” by making him a Moslem. And so begins the story of persuasion,
injunctions, compulsion and, in the end, torture. Andrew was no longer a child, and he understood
the sanctity of the faith in which he had been raised; it was impossible for him to cast aside
his convictions. He believed that only the Orthodox Faith was true, especially now, when he could
see the various abominations of the Turks. His ignorance of the language of this foreign land
helped him to safeguard his treasure inviolate and it saved him from moral downfall.

In the beginning Andrew’s owner was kind and did not implement his intention to make a
Moslem of him. Therefore, Andrew, submissive to his fate and having become somewhat accustomed to
his circumstances and to the ways of his master, patiently bore the burden of his slavery and
gave thanks to Providence that he had been destined to serve a master who at least did not
persecute him nor interfere with the things sacred to his Faith. His only grief was that inimical
forces had torn him from his blessed fatherland forever. Thus month after month passed; the Turk
observed him and noted that not only did he possess physical strength but that he also had
intellectual gifts and good moral qualities: modesty, absolute obedience and unusual probity and
a love for labor. From this time he began to consider Andrew as a real hidden treasure and set
about making plans concerning him. The master was a family man; he had grown-up daughters for
whom he had to provide, and so now his attention came to rest upon his newly acquired slave. This
slave was not a black from the depths of Africa, but a Caucasian and furthermore one of Russian
stock – such a rarity not even the Ottoman seraskiers2 could boast of. In his
master’s eyes, Andrew possessed all the possible merits, only a knowledge of the local
dialect was lacking and, most important, he was not a Moslem. Andrew shunned the manner of life
that his master led, for it continually grieved him; he did everything mechanically, without
enthusiasm and from the time that he became a slave no one ever saw him smile. Furthermore,
something akin to disdain was apparent in his actions. The master suspected that the cause of
such behavior was the fact that he was as yet a Christian; for could a Christian ever esteem the
customs of Moslems, still less adopt them? He resolved, therefore, to make Andrew a Moslem and
thought of calling him Abdallah, that is “the slave of God.” The fanatic set about
gradually converting his servant to Islam by using the name Abdallah.

Andrew immediately understood what this was leading to and he resolved in his heart to
preserve unshakably the holy Faith of his fathers even though it might cost him his life.
Therefore when they called him Abdallah, he did not answer, as though he did not understand whom
they were addressing and would come only when he heard his Christian name, Andrew. The master
noted that it would not be an easy task to change the Russian’s religious convictions. This
was no pagan from whom coaxes and threats might gain anything one wished for. Therefore, he
resorted to wily seductions, promising Andrew many things. He assured him that in time he would
allow him his freedom, as a member of his household. He even promised him honors for his
obedience. The whole family helped in the task of diverting Andrew from the right path; each
member pampered their slave in every way. Rather than burden him with onerous labors, they
consoled him speaking of the joys of his future status. They even made allusions to his having a
bride from amongst the family, were he only to abandon his faith in Jesus Christ and become a
Moslem. The helpless Andrew saw all these snares, and he was perturbed by all the proposals made
to him, for he now understood Arabic; however, he was not fooled by the promises which in his
eyes were plainly fraudulent. He sensed that after a period of success there would follow one of
bitter disappointment, and then he could not turn back. In his heart there would remain only
despair. Nothing would be able to console him. Being a good Christian, he considered all these
things to be temptations and snares laid for his destruction by the devil. Having no support nor
any good friend he found his only consolation in secret prayer, in converse with God, the
protector of the oppressed; he snatched the opportunity for this in the free minutes of the night
when no one was watching him. One day, having lost all patience with his masters’s
propositions, he declared openly that he was in complete submission to the will of God; he was
resigned to his lot as a slave in a foreign land, and that, as a slave, he would fulfill all his
obligations as sacred insofar as his strength would allow, but concerning any apostasy from the
Christian Faith he advised his master to have no thought of persuading him. He confessed that he
would sooner be sundered from life itself than renounce his Lord and Redeemer.

The master, having been spoiled by the usual unquestioning obedience of his slaves and
inferiors, did not expect such steadfast resistance, and thus he changed his method completely.
Formerly he had been a kind master; now he became a tyrannical torturer. Andrew, unshakeable as
he was, soon began to perceive and to feel his master’ displeasure. Strict chidings were
heard instead of the earlier meek biddings; endearments were replaced by coarseness; he was
constantly jostled and his Christian Faith was cursed. No longer was he called Andrew, instead
they referred to him as “infidel dog.” No matter how efficient and industrious he
was, in no way could he please his masters. The other black slaves, who had formerly been
somewhat dependent upon him, began to maltreat him constantly. The duties of the Christian were
increased threefold. He grew weak without rest either day or night, and furthermore the most
degrading work was assigned to him. Instead of having tolerable and decent clothing he was
obliged to wear smelly rags, and one need not even mention his food – the laborer went hungry and
it was only after his extra labors that they would throw him, as though he were a dog, a crust of
stale bread. The unhappy sufferer was aware of the reason for his afflictions. He heard threats
that this was to be only the beginning of his torments if he did not submit to his master’s
demands. He knew all this, but with steadfast hope in God’s aid he prepared himself for
whatever might be his lot.

Seeing that belittlement, exhausting labors and deprivation had no effect upon his unyielding
slave, and that rather, to the contrary, they strengthened him in the Christian Faith, the Turk
resorted to measures of another kind. Everyday he was scourged with lashes of ox-hide for no
reason at all; often he was denied even a crust of bread all day, and on hot days they would not
even permit him a drink of water, so that it was only at night that, secretly, he could quench
his thirst. Everyone watched him; everyone from the master to the most lowly slave persecuted
him. Yet he endured and remained steadfast. Not even the flattering persuasions of the old men,
the maalmin or teachers of the Moslems, could shake him. Thus did the hapless captive suffer for
almost a year, and by his invincible long-suffering he overcame the tyrant’s obstinacy. And
so the Turk despaired of achieving his desired goal. Disheartened now, he began to grieve, not
over the spiritual destruction of his slave but over the money that he had expended upon him. The
Turk was, therefore, prepared to sell him for a reasonable sum if only to rid himself of such a
man, who by his moral example, his marvellous patience, his meekness and piety, put to shame his
master’s convictions, hopes and finally ridiculed his very despotic rule.

Humiliated and grieved on account of his slave, after a futile attempt to torture him, the
cruel despot was sitting one day with his nargileh3 in a coffee-house and
related his woe to one of his friends, a staunch Moslem.

“With that unclean Christian, my Muscovite slave,” he said, “Allah has sent
me a trial. I thought to bring good fortune to the unworthy giaour4 and to do
something that would please the prophet by putting this infidel on the path of right belief. And
lo, I have been struggling with him for almost a year now, yet he grows more and more obstinate.
I have flattered him, I even clothed him as I would my own child, and fed him at my own table. I
promised to adopt him into the household as though he were born therein – all to no avail. Then I
resorted to sterner measures; any one else would have given in in a day or two, but not my slave,
he became more persistent. I beat him with whips until he was exhausted. I starved him for a
whole week at a time. It would have been an easier fate to be a stray dog than to share this
unfortunate’s lot; nevertheless he endured everything in silence. He suffered as though it
were not his own body that was tormented and, most disagreeable of all, never did he complain or
ask for mercy, rather he prayed to his Jesus. He told me: ‘Effendi,5 I am prepared to
work for you until I die should my strength hold out, only do not try to force me to change my
holy Faith. In vain do you disquiet yourself, I will not become a Mohammedan. I will remain in
the confession which I received from my parents. It is their prayers that help me!’ As
regards integrity, humility and love of work, this man is golden and I would never part with him.
But now he shames me and sometimes I cannot even bear to look at him, hapless as he is. It seems
to me that he is laughing up his sleeve at all my endeavors. My neighbors also mock me, and my
friend, the mullah,6 called me a fool to my face because I cannot overcome a
contemptible slave. And so nothing remains for me but to rid myself of this odious Christian even
though I might have to settle for a low price.”

“Clearly you are a man of weak character, as you cannot fulfill this holy task to the
glory of Allah! If you wish, sell your slave to me and you will see how I shall make of him the
most zealous of Moslems. This will now be my concern. Allah-kerim!7 Do you
agree?”

The effendi quickly settled on a price with him, and poor Andrew was transferred on that very
day to the other’s house, to a new master, to torments worse than before.

On entering the new house, he had a premonition that now his real afflictions were to begin
and that what he had borne so far was, as the saying goes, only the blossom and that the fruit
was yet to come. However, he entrusted himself wholly to the providence of God, and in secret he
prayed to the Lord to give him strength for this new contest, fought to the glory of His holy
name; also, that, if it were well-pleasing unto Him, he might be numbered among the host of
martyrs whose fate now threatened the defenseless Andrew. “I put all my hope in thee, O
Mother of God,” he prayed. “Guard me under thy protection!” And in very truth
there was no other protection for him save only the unseen refuge of the one who intercedes
before the Lord for the oppressed.

The eyes of his new and bestial owner scanned him, and therein the slave encountered neither
kindness, nor any goodness. The master and his domestics all regarded him with malice and
suppressed hatred. The new effendi immediately made his demands clear to his slave:
“Listen, faithless dog,” he greeted Andrew, “I did not buy you that you might
teach me; nay rather, I will instruct you, and I will not permit you to defile my house and my
servants with your loathsome religion. I will make a true Moslem of you, and then you yourself
will bless me. You will recognize the true faith, and will honor Mohammed, the prophet of God,
rather than this Nazarene of yours. If you are obstinate, as you were with your former noble
effendi, you will be in peril of a cruel death by torture. I shall not begrudge the money spent
on you. Such is my decisive sentence! Let us see who will deliver you? You are my slave, and are
therefore obliged to fulfill all my demands unquestioningly, whatsoever they may be. Now go and
consider, you will be given a job to do this very day!”

“Effendi,” answered the unfortunate Andrew, “my body belongs to you, but my
soul is God’s. If it pleases God that I should end my life in burdensome slavery, I will
submit to His holy will, and will work for you as far as I am able; only I ask of you one thing:
do not abuse my conscience, leave me my sole consolation, leave me my Christian Faith. You can
torture me, or rather, you can torture my body, but all the same my soul belongs to God alone,
and in the future life He will recompense me for my temporal sufferings, of this I am convinced
and I hope that the Lord will not leave His hapless servant bereft of His mercy and
aid.”

Andrew’s simple but resolute words convinced his new master that it would be difficult
for him to defeat such a steadfast Christian and that here flatteries, lures and persuasions
would be to no avail except to bring him shame and moral defeat at the hands of this exceedingly
courageous Christian. Therefore the fanatic, one not accustomed to being contradicted, resolved
to act vigorously.

The most onerous and the basest duties were assigned to meek Andrew. His master had a house
with a large garden in Buluka, and this garden and the toilsome watering thereof were entrusted
to the laborer. Andrew did the work of three men and knew no rest neither during the day nor at
night, but despite all this he did not succeed in fulfilling his obligations, for they were
beyond his powers. For such short-comings, the malicious tyrant rained down blows upon the
unfortunate one with a liberal hand.

Because of the lack of workmen, the garden began to decline noticeably, for at the very least
three men were required to care for it. Formerly there had been three, but how was it possible
for the unfortunate Andrew, morally and physically wearied as he was, to do it alone?
Nevertheless they accused him of laziness and refractoriness.

The sufferer was transferred into his master’s house, and he quickly came to understand
that it would have been better for him to work until exhausted in the garden, and perhaps on one
hot day to bring his laborer’s struggle to an end under a tree, dying there from sheer
exhaustion. So far they had tormented him for his supposed negligence, but now he encountered
something completely different. Here they were no longer punishing him with work beyond his
powers, but they desired to overthrow his firm Christian convictions and, whether he will it or
not, to compel him to accept the Moslem faith that he hated. Were he to convert to that religion,
they promised Andrew anything, all the advantages of life and the diversions that the Moslems
enjoy which he had seen for himself. However, the very thought of renouncing his Faith and taking
up their bovine existence disgusted him so much that his hair stood on end. He understood that
the holy Christian Faith, his only consolation in his captivity, teaches us to live a life
patterned on the utter contrary. During his frequent prayers the voice of his Faith constantly
reminded him that, should he apostatize, all would be well for now, but what would await him
beyond the grave? The Lord says, “Whosoever lays down his life for My sake shall save
it.” “No,” thought the sufferer, “I will take up my cross and go
whithersoever the Savior directs. Without His willing it, not a hair of my head shall fall. What
have I to fear? In all things let God’s will be done!”

Andrew prepared himself for everything that the soulless tyrants might devise for him. The
effendi again proposed that he either become a Moslem or suffer such torments that he could not
even imagine. The unfortunate Christian meekly remarked that he had given not the slightest cause
for them to torture him, for he had worked honestly and even exceeded the resources of his
strength; however if his master were thirsting for his blood, he was prepared to suffer, and
asked only that they refrain from demanding that he apostatize, for this would profit nothing and
would only deprive him of a faithful slave.

The exasperated Turk thereupon summoned his barbaric black slaves and commanded them to
introduce their comrade to a hundred lashes across the soles of his feet. The slaves immediately
threw Andrew off his feet, and secured his legs with ropes to a large pole. Two of them held this
pole at its ends some thirty inches from the ground, and their fellows set about beating the
unfortunate one across the soles. Andrew began to cry out, then he groaned and finally he fell
silent. He had lost consciousness. However, not once did he utter a word asking for mercy, nor
did he promise to fulfill the godless demands of his master. When that villain saw that his slave
was half-dead, and that blood was pouring from underneath his nails he commanded that the torture
stop and that they throw Andrew into the cellar. There Andrew came to himself, but now he could
not stand on his feet. An intolerable thirst tormented the sufferer and so with groans he begged
for some water. One of the slaves who had apparently also tasted of the effendi’s cruelty,
pitied him and gave him water and a piece of bread. However Andrew’s wounds were tormenting
him, the insects stung him and the mice, smelling the bread, boldly came out of their holes and
nibbled at the crust which soon disappeared. Night fell, a night of torment! The insects and
creeping things of every kind crawled out from the damp crevices in the cellar and began to crawl
over the living corpse. Andrew suffered and prayed that the Lord grant him, as a great mercy,
death.

But it was not to be. Yet more agonizing sufferings were in store for the martyr, sufferings
such as only the first Christians endured, those martyrs of the time of Nero and Diocletian.
Thinking that these torments had had an effect upon his unyielding slave, the effendi commanded
that he be taken to a more comfortable room, and there that his wounds be treated. Andrew bore
everything with true Christian patience. He blessed God for the trials which He had sent him; he
thanked his comrades in captivity should any of them, whether by word or deed, have shown
sympathy to him and thus had defied the orders of their deluded master.

With the aid of simple home cures, or more properly speaking, with God’s aid, the
sufferer got up and once more set about his work. It would seem that his first, cruel and futile
attempt to make his slave a Moslem, should have taught the tyrant to leave so steadfast a
Christian in peace, but unfortunately Andrew’s former master visited this effendi. Learning
of the failure of the latter’s missionary enterprise, he in turn laughed at his firm
resolve and noble zeal. This grievously offended the barbarian’s self-esteem and no sooner
had he taken leave of his friend than he summoned his slave and demanded of him whether he
intended to convert to Islam. The latter’s reply in the negative put the fierce tyrant into
a fury. The black slaves, cold-blooded though they were, became disturbed by their master’s
plans; however, they were obliged to carry out his will. The evil one ordered that Andrew be
bound to a pillar and reed splinters driven under his nails. Andrew moaned, struggled to free
himself, begged for mercy, but promised nothing. Even the household servants besought the
malicious one to terminate these bestial torments. However, the groans finally died away, and
Andrew hung in his bonds like one dead.

The evil one’s anger cooled, and he as it were, mellowed, leaving the Christian to
reconsider his position. However, the more Andrew suffered for the Holy Faith, the more he was
strengthened therein; with every stripe his heroism waxed stronger. Distinguished Moslem fanatics
were called upon, one after another, but the confessor was deaf to their arguments. Some of them
sought to persuade him with threats and abuse, but before such men he was silent. Others
attempted to weaken his resolve with comforts and promises of all the good things of earth and
paradise; with such men he sometimes began to reason and with his simple words, full of
righteousness and truth, and with his moral principles, he oftentimes constrained them to
silence. It would appear that the wheedling preachers brought him more harm than the crude
fanatics, for after their departure, this God-fearing and steadfast captive almost always had to
endure some new inhumane torment. Who could it be, if it were not God’s providence, but the
Lord Himself, Who invisibly restored the sufferer’s strength, so that after these
afflictions he remained whole and unharmed?

The poor captive lived in this manner and knew so little about the affairs of the world
outside his torturer’s house that nothing could serve to alleviate his lot. Although he
knew that he was a Russian, he had been taken so far from his homeland that he had not been
granted to hear even so much as one word of his native tongue since. Could he know that in Egypt
there were representatives of the Russian Empire, who perhaps could have afforded him protection,
had they been aware of his unhappy fate? Andrew could not complain to the authorities of the
Moslems, for he understood that he was a slave, lower than the animals and completely in the
power of the villainous and wealthy Mameluke.8 To whom then could he turn for refuge
at that terrible time, when even the effendis mercilessly destroyed one another, and they in turn
fell without a murmur under the yataghan9 of a certain adroit despot from
Albania, Ali Pasha?

Andrew did not fear the torments, nor did he lose heart or waver in confessing the holy
Christian Faith, he feared only that his suffering would go on endlessly, and particularly he
trembled at the thought that they might well use violence to inflict the customary Moslem
operation upon him, after which, whether he will or not, he would be obliged to submit to the
society of the Moslems. Although they would not have altered his convictions, they would cease to
believe that he was still a Christian. This is what the confessor feared and he prayed the Lord
to send him a Christian end the more quickly and to vouchsafe him a martyr’s crown. The
Lord heard the prayer of His suffering servant and granted him an end, not to his life, but to
his afflictions, wherefrom he emerged as a true soldier of Christ, an unconquered confessor with
grievous wounds covering his body (bearing witness to his triumph) which he bore until his
blessed repose.

Time passed. One day the effendi returned from some place in an extremely bad frame of mind.
All the slaves trembled and tried to anticipate their master’s wishes in order to carry
them out punctiliously and thus avoid his bestial outbursts of passion. Regardless of this no one
could satisfy him and everyone was accused of laziness and sluggardliness. Once, noticing that
all his slaves stood before him, saving only the ailing Andrew, the tyrant commanded that he be
brought, and, as if he did not observe that he, pallid and weakened, cold scarcely support
himself, he approached him and rudely began to reproach him for indolence and disobedience.
Andrew was calm and undisturbed; he heard the fanatics’s bellowing and cursing in silence,
and secretly prayed the Lord to grant him patience in the afflictions that were to come, as the
malefactor’s furious rage forebode. The serenity and silence of his captive incensed the
despot all the more.

“How long, miserable slave, will you afflict me by your obstinate attachment to your
abominable religion and how long will you continue to deride our holy and true faith? No, I will
not permit you to sneer at us, and at God’s friend, the great prophet Mohammed! Let us see
what you will have to say when I command that your obstinacy be steamed out of that ram’s
head of yours, and with it all of your Christianity; we shall see whether your God Isa Nafani
(Jesus the Nazarene) will help you! Know, infidel, that now our savior is Mohammed the prophet
and not Jesus! You need only say: ’Lya ilyamakhmed-rasul-allah,’10 and you
will be saved, you will be our son, but otherwise you will perish, both your filthy body and your
impure soul. You will perish like a dog. So say it!”

Unshaken, Andrew heard neither his curses nor his senseless affronts against the holy Faith of
the Christians. He became, as it were, a rock and only prayed in his soul: “O God, may Thy
mercy be upon me a sinner! I believe, O Lord, help Thou mine unbelief!”

The torturer ordered his slaves to heat a tanzhere (that is, a copper vessel) until it
was red hot and to bring it to him quickly. Anticipating the frightful torture, no one dared to
break the silence. The furious Mameluke silently smoked his pipe, making curling clouds of
tobacco smoke. He was so enraged when they did not bring the terrible torture instrument for some
time, he ran short of breath. Finally the tanzhere, smoking from the heat, was brought to
the torturer; he spat upon it and with a hiss, the filthy spittle evaporated. In the interval
while he observed his servants lest they deceive him, and while he continued to demand a decisive
answer from the unfortunate captive, the tanzhere cooled somewhat. When he received no
answer, the effendi, as though he were a tiger, threw himself upon his defenseless victim. He
took a pair of tongs from his slave, laid hold of the heated tanzhere and immediately put
it, as if it were a hat, over Andrew’s head. Andrew staggered and, with a groan, fell to
the floor as though he were dead. Smoking and hissing, the tanzhere fell off to one side
and the room was filled with a terrible stench. The evil Moslem was stupefied and dully looked
upon the Christian, his innocent, martyric victim. Although the red-hot tanzhere had not
been long upon the sufferer’s head, his hair, his crown, nose, ears, cheeks, and neck were
all seriously burnt. Andrew was scarcely breathing and he made no sound. The tyrant, thinking
that the hapless one would soon die, kicked him and commanded that they remove him.

The slaves were benumbed with horror. Now indeed they were able to understand just how far the
bestial cruelty of their right-believing and pious zealot for the Islamic faith could go. Each
one realized that their master might well treat them in the same way. When they came to
themselves, they carefully took Andrew and, as though he were a breathless corpse, they laid him
on a mat in the corner of their room. Now it was manifest that all these slaves, whom one might
suppose to be barbarous and savage, when adjudged with respect to morality, greatly excelled over
the bestial lord. The unmerited punishment of their fellow awakened in them an undying feeling of
brotherly love. Without the knowledge of the effendi, they began to heal Andrew with their
household cures, and they secretly let it be known throughout the neighborhood how bestial was
the conduct of their master, the torturer. And thus some time passed. Beyond all expectations the
severely burnt Andrew began to recover little by little, thanks to the ministrations of his
comrades, and so it was that he was able to rise up from his little mat. However, a noticeable
change had occurred in him: he said very little and would oftentimes give abrupt answers, he
became pensive and downcast, and it was only at night that he prayed aloud, fancying that no one
could hear him for, as a result of the cruel torture, he had himself become hard of hearing.

Among the strangers who visited the Turk’s house, a certain Armenian who was not
infrequently there, learned of Andrew’s bitter fate. He was a well-known local saraf or
banker, and he had seen Andrew there. The saraf was a good man, and despite his passion for
commerce, the feeling of Christian love for one’s neighbor and that of sympathy for the
oppressed were not entirely overwhelmed within him. From one of the Mameluke’s servants he
learned the whole story of Andrew’s persecutions for the Faith of Christ, and greatly
impressed by such heroic contests, the like of which are written about only in the ancient
martyrologies, he resolved to save this steadfast combatant. One day, the saraf chanced to come
see the Turk on business, and having discussed his concerns, he then turned the conversation to
the white Russian slave. Why had he not seen him for a long time? Had he been sold? The effendi
unsympathetically related how he had struggled with his disobedient slave for such along time,
and how, after a light admonition, this wretched slave had fallen ill and was now doing nothing.
In conclusion the effendi said that he would be glad to be rid of him, but he was at a loss to
know how this might be accomplished.

“Excuse my candidness, noble effendi,” said the good saraf, “but I have
heard from reliable sources that your slave did not fall sick, but is actually ill as a result of
the last torture which you, in your fury, vented upon him. Now, thanks to your paternal
solicitude for his correction, he is incapable of doing anything; and further he will soon die
and you will have suffered a loss. You ought to know, besides, that the rumor has spread around
the whole city that you murdered your white captive, and everyone condemns you for your cruelty.
And should word of this reach the consuls, then beware lest the wrath of the pasha fall upon you;
you should know that the consuls will not permit anyone to assault a Christian and though he be
your slave they are empowered to take him away from you for good.”

The Mameluke became rather thoughtful.

“Effendi, if you do not wish to lose your money on account of the death of your slave or
because he will be taken from you, I will spare you that grief. Nothing remains for you to do,
but sell him to someone else with all haste. But who amongst your own people will buy him? He is
good for nothing. No one will take him even if he is given away, and it will certainly not pay
you to set a price upon him. If you wish to free yourself of this grievance, sell him to me and
then it will be my concern. You will lose nothing and will not be answerable. Only bear in mind
that I am delivering you only for the sake of our acquaintance and friendship, for I have no need
of your slave and wish only to do you a service.”

The effendi’s face brightened. He quickly realized that this was indeed a friendly
service, though he did not understand what motivated the saraf’s extreme generosity. He
wanted to respond with feigned magnanimity, because in his soul he was willing even to give the
crippled slave away as a gift. But now he was being offered a ransom.

Without revealing his satisfaction on hearing the Armenian’s proposal, the effendi
suggested that he take the Muscovite slave and in return pay as much as he himself considered to
be fair. The contract was soon sealed. The mercenary Turk, on receiving a price greater than he
had expected, was overcome with delight and began to spew forth the customary eastern
compliments, and, forgetting the difference in their religious convictions, he even called the
saraf his friend, yea, and his brother.

The saraf, on the other hand, was serene, and hastened only to accomplish his good and
Christian deed.

The tormented Andrew knew nothing of this settlement and was, therefore, astonished when he
found himself at the saraf’s house. He had been acquainted with him beforehand. Now he came
to understand the situation and was heartened by the sure hope that they would no longer torture
him for bearing the designation Christian. From joy he burst into tears. As a thank-offering for
his deliverance he resolved to serve his new master for as long as his strength would permit,
especially as they had received him into the saraf’s family with utmost kindliness and
concern. However, the saraf thought otherwise: he did not wish to extract any profit from the
piasters that he had expended in buying Andrew, and, besides, Andrew was already an invalid.
Having fulfilled his Christian duty, Andrew’s deliverer wished only to bring his holy task
to a successful conclusion more speedily by obtaining the unfortunate one’s release and by
securing a future for him. The saraf made his way to the Greek patriarch and told him about the
bitter lot of the latter’s co-religionist, Andrew, and how God had assisted him in freeing
this martyr from the hands of his Turkish executioner. Furthermore he explained that, having
purchased the poor Muscovite, he had no intention of deriving any material benefit from him. He
proposed to commit him to the patriarch’s care, who no doubt would not refuse to fulfill
his holy and Christian obligation, either to provide for the hapless one in the patriarchate or
to send him on his way back to Russia, his homeland.

Touched to the depths of his soul by the good saraf’s tale, the patriarch sincerely
thanked him, but he grieved that he had not known earlier about his unhappy co-religionist, and
had been unable to take any measures to ease his bitter, martyric fate. He asked that he be
presented to him in private in the patriarchate. And so it was that on the next day, the
enfeebled Andrew was presented to the patriarach who received him as a true confessor for the
Faith of Christ, promising that after his complete recovery he would be sent back to Russia
through the Alexandrian consulate. However, this last promise did not gladden Andrew as the
patriarch had supposed it would.

“Holy Master,” said Andrew, “it is already too late for me to return to my
fatherland. I am now incapable of heavy work. I cannot earn my bread by my own labors. You
yourself can see, holy master, what I look like. I shall not reach my homeland. I shall most
likely take my leave of life on some ship and not in Russia, my native land. Besides, what would
I find in my homeland? By now none of my kinsfolk is left. My father was murdered long ago by the
Circassians. My old mother, likely as not, died of grief and anguish when I was lost without a
trace. Therefore, it only remains for me, the homeless and crippled one, to beg Your Holiness to
bless me to end my martyric and, it would seem, short life somewhere hereabouts, close to a
church of God so that I might pray therein to the Lord for the salvation of my soul and for the
health of my benefactors and deliverers. As long as I have the strength, I shall work at my
obedience and thus I shall not have to eat your bread as a gift. I need very little. I am your
servant and shall remain your faithful slave forever on account of your beneficence.”

The patriarch agreed and placed the sufferer in the almshouse at the Monastery of St. George
in Old Cairo without imposing any obligations upon him. Andrew went to Old Cairo with
inexpressible joy and peacefully settled into this quiet haven. He was given only old clothing
and simple food but he was satisfied and sincerely thanked his benefactors. Now he could breathe
freely. Now, when he arose in the morning he knew that there was no one to beat him, no one to
tyrannize him, and that he could just as safely lie down to sleep without fear and he could await
the rising of the sun in peace. Now there were good people around him, all Orthodox Christians
and not ferocious beasts who on a senseless whim, or more often because they had nothing to do,
made sport of him in the most inhumane manner and who most assuredly would have killed him, had
the Lord not sent him a good guardian angel in the person of the pious saraf. Being godly and
meek, he wholeheartedly gave himself over to the service of God and by his struggles soon stood
in the ranks of the great desert-dwellers.

Andrew asked the patriarch’s blessing that he might serve in the poor church of St.
George, clean up the Old Cairo monastery and put the interior of the chapel, where the
wonder-working icon of the great martyr is found, in order, for those suffering from epilepsy who
had fled thither for healing. The silent devotee of God labored from morning until evening in the
church, making God’s temple clean as was meet, or he would work in the dark corridors of
the monastery’s towers, walking about with a basket on his shoulders and a broom so that he
might gather up all the refuse and take it out beyond the monastery wall.

The laborer did not miss one service. During the divine service he could constantly be seen
either quietly praying or reverently serving in the sanctuary and the church. Having been
neglected previously because of the carelessness of the former caretakers, the church and the
monastery were now soon cleansed of all rubbish, refuse and dust. Those bound by chains before
the icon of St. George ceased to fear the overseer and went to the shrine in absolute submission,
knowing that the good and meek Andrew would care for them. Meanwhile, the godly laborer, Andrew,
apparently as a result of the torments that he had endured, became weaker each day and became
more pensive, and towards the end he was completely melancholy. Rarely did he speak with anyone,
and then only briefly. He worked continually, he cleaned, he swept even more than his duties
required and all the while without interruption he quietly said in Greek the short prayer:
“Lord have mercy.” However, when he prayed in Russian he made use of the prayers that
he had learned in childhood. Because his head had been seared by the red-hot kettle, he was
unable to grasp Greek, but if he happened to talk with someone, he was able to make himself
sufficiently well understood in the local Arab dialect. Knowing of his unusual meekness, his
goodness, tireless love of labor and his solicitude for the tidiness of God’s house and of
the monastery, everyone called him “the Blessed.” And no one would offend him either
by word or in deed, for they considered it a great sin to disturb the humble confessor, the
obvious wounds on whose body constantly witnessed to his great contests for the Faith of Christ.
All the Orthodox Greeks and Arabs knew the blessed Andrew and on occasion they used to honor him
with their gifts, but Andrew gave everything to the poor because he himself had once been
poor.

Thus did the blessed confessor live in Cairo for almost twelve years, fully content with his
situation, although, in fact, the poor Muscovite’s situation was anything but enviable. He
was consoled simply by the fact, as he himself expressed it, that he was serving God and St.
George. Worn out by his previous sufferings, by his labors and his fasting, the servant of God
became sickly and finally took to his bed completely. No one took care of the patient and he did
not demand that anyone should nurse him. His sole wish was the more quickly to leave the world in
which, in the very deepest sense, he was a stranger and pilgrim. Nothing bound him to the earth,
there was nothing to comfort him, he had ceased to think even about his homeland, as if it were
no longer to be found upon earth, and so he prepared himself for death with rejoicing. Feeling
the approach of his end, Andrew called, for the last time, the poor priest who lived within the
almshouse and who was his spiritual father. He confessed, partook of the Holy Mysteries and ended
his days as a righteous man. The peaceful, blessed repose of the confessor made a deep impression
on those who were in the care of the almshouse; now they surrounded the righteous struggler as
was fitting and grieved that during his life they had not honored him meetly, thinking he was a
fool. Quietly, without any ceremony, they chanted the funeral service for the departed pilgrim in
the cemetery church of the Theotokos, and they laid him to rest in the common cemetery enclosure
among the departed fathers and brethren. No wooden memorial, no cut stone, nor even a simple
stone stands on his poor grave. Andrew lived for God alone, to what purpose then was it that
people should know his grave, even though they might be his compatriots?

Peace unto your dust, faithful servant of God, ever-memorable Andrew! Your suffering for the
Christian Faith, for the Faith of the fathers, the Lord alone will judge and will glorify you in
His Kingdom! Perhaps in the Moslem lands there were many other similar sufferers of the Christian
Faith, but who, excepting the Lord, knows of their bitter fate?

Endnotes:

1. Satrap: A petty prince; a despotic subordinate official.

2. Seraskier: The title of the Turkish minister of war, who is also commander in chief
of the army.

3. Nargileh: A water pipe.

4. Giaour: Turkish term of abuse for Christians.

5. Effendi: Master; sir; a Turkish title of respect.

6. Mullah: A teacher of the laws and dogmas of Islam.

7. Allah-kerim!: Thanks be to God!

8. Mameluke: One of a body of soldiers recruited from slaves converted to Islam, who
had great political power in Egypt until they were exterminated or dispersed by Mehemet Ali in
1811.

9. Yataghan: A long knife, or short saber, without a crosspiece, common among
Moslems.